Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has advocated for Virat Kohli to take a break so that he finds his fire for the game back. Kohli could not contribute much during Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and his total five Test innings runs added up only to 190, which included an average of 23.75. His inability with deliveries outside off-stump became extreme at this point; he was even dismissed behind eight times in nine innings, leaving one innings unbeaten.
What Is Going Wrong For Virat Kohli?
Ponting observed that Kohli’s tendency to overexert himself is working against him, causing frustration, especially after his dismissal in the second innings of the final Test in Sydney. Ponting, drawing from his own experience, advised Kohli to ease the pressure and consider taking a break similar to the one he had after the 2022 England tour, when Kohli went without touching a bat for 30 days. Ponting believes that a break could help Kohli relieve the weight of expectations and return to playing more freely.
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Virat Kohli Trying Too Hard
“…The challenge is, and I can see it with Virat now, you can see how much he wants it. He’s trying so hard that actually makes batting harder. The harder you try sometimes with batting, the less success you’re going to have,” Ponting told ICC.
Ricky Ponting Gives His Own Example
“I started thinking more about not getting out rather than scoring runs and that might sound strange but that’s what it was. I was trying to be so perfect set the right example play exactly the way my team needed me all the time but when I was playing my best I didn’t think about any of that.
Virat Kohli’s Struggle With Outside Off Stump Delivery
“I just walked out and thought about scoring runs. I can just see a little bit of that with Virat now. Even the way that he’s getting out you can see he doesn’t want to be playing at those balls he’s trying not to do it but he’s there’s some mental block there that’s making him feel for that one outside the off stump,” the legendary cricketer added.
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Virat Kohli Needs To Take A Break
“A break can only help the Indian legend,” said Ponting. “He had a mental break (in the past) where he stepped away for a while and then came back and find the love for the game again. So right now it just seems like that real love of the game for him is not there because he’s making it too hard to enjoy. So if he wants to continue playing Test match cricket, he might just need to have a little spell for a while, find the love for the game again.”
